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June 28, 2013: Detroit Tigers designated hitter Victor Martinez (41) works out prior to the game against the Tampa Bay Rays at Tropicana Field. / USA TODAY Sports

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CLEVELAND — Tom Hamilton, a radio announcer for the Cleveland Indians, visited with Victor Martinez in the Tigers’ clubhouse over the weekend.

And Martinez opened up about how frustrated he has felt this season.

“Victor said, ‘One day I feel great, the next day I feel like I have no idea what I’m doing at the plate, like I’ve never had a bat in my hands,’ ” Hamilton said.

Hamilton shook his head in surprise. He has always appreciated Martinez because he is such a good guy. Because he treats everybody the same way. Because he is so honest and doesn’t have a phony bone in his body.

“You Victor?” Hamilton said, in disbelief.

How can somebody who has been so great for so long — a career .299 hitter — lose his confidence and get so frustrated?

This conversation happened on Saturday morning, the day after Martinez had three hits against the Indians.

“He was like, ‘Yeah, it’s bizarre that way,’ ” Hamilton said.

And that’s cruel part of baseball — it can humble anybody.

But after a slow start, Martinez is getting hot.

He has a nine-game hitting streak and has helped the Tigers win two of the first three games at Cleveland, going 5-for-11 in the series.

“I still have a long ways to go,” Martinez said. “I’m not even halfway of what I can be.”

After surgery

Martinez missed the entire 2012 season after microfracture surgery.

When he came back, he struggled at the plate.

Which was no surprise to Sandy Alomar Jr., who had the same surgery in 1995.

“It’s a very tough surgery,” said Alomar, who had 10 knee surgeries in his career and is now the bench coach for the Indians. “It’s in your subconscious. Even if it’s repaired, something is still missing in your body. Your body is not completely balanced, it’s out of whack. So you make adjustments. I had the same problem when I had a microfracture. That was the worst injury that I had in my career.”

After Alomar had microfiber surgery, he had to change his throwing mechanics and his hitting mechanics, which offers some insight into what Martinez has had to deal with. “I felt like if I had the slightest bend in my knee, it was going to cave in,” Alomar said. “You start losing confidence in how your body feels. That’s the main battle when an athlete gets hurt. You have to make adjustments because it’s not the same. You try to figure out on the go. How am I going to stride? How am I going to rotate? You always look for that pain.”

In March and April, Martinez struggled with a .221 batting average.

He tried to make adjustments, tried to battle through it, but nothing worked. Martinez hit .235 in May and .240 in June, and the frustration mounted.

“Yeah, I’m not going to lie,” Martinez said. “When you aren’t hitting it like you want, you get frustrated. I’m a human person like everybody else. Maybe, I shouldn’t get frustrated. But it’s tough. When you are not getting any results, it’s tough man. I get frustrated. (You) take crappy at bats. Bad swings.”

Some fans wanted Tigers skipper Jim Leyland to drop Martinez down in the batting order but he stuck with Martinez. And now, it’s paying off.

Over the last 14 days, Martinez has hit at a .327 clip.

Over the last 7 days, he’s hitting a sizzling .360.

“He’s a thing of beauty when he gets into a groove like he is right now,” Leyland said. “We want to carry that over into the second half.”

Improving

Alomar can see the change in Martinez. “You can see how much better he is getting,” Alomar said. “I’m not surprised. He seems to have recovered. He has turned that corner. The ball is jumping off his bat.”

Obviously, the Tigers’ lineup is more explosive with a confident, line-drive hitting Martinez. “He is swinging at strikes,” Leyland said. “He is not trying to do too much. He is hitting line drives. That’s the Victor we know and love.”

Martinez had a chance to be the hero on Sunday, but he struck out with two guys on base in the eighth inning. As he said, he is only halfway there.

But he feels as if he is getting better every day. In the games. Even in practice. For two days during batting practice at Progressive Field, the ball was jumping off his bat. “I think, personally, it’s the best B.P. that I’ve taken all year,” Martinez said. “I feel great.”

The hits are coming and starting to add up. That frustration is fading. And the lineup just got a whole lot better.